Azure is getting much better than what it was before. It is getting competitive alongside AWS and GCP. The job market also has tons of openings for Azure Professionals. Getting certified is definitely worth it.
Certifications cover a lot of concepts that you may not know. Understanding these concepts help take better decisions for organizational projects. You are also in a better position to help your colleagues. Certified professionals have a competitive advantage over others.
The first thing that you must do before enrolling for any Azure certification exam is to determine whether the certification track is aligned with your career goals. I did 5 certifications so far and they are all aligned towards my specialization.
Once you have decided your WHY, schedule the exam if you are serious about it. Certifications are optional to be honest. Having one has some benefits though: it validates your understanding about the concepts and it boosts your confidence when you actually pass the certification exam. Plus these days, employers are looking for certified professionals. Just doing certification is not enough. What truly matters is the hands on experience.
The number one certificate that you must do is the AZ-900 Microsoft Azure Fundamentals. This is the most basic certificate that makes your Cloud and Azure fundamentals stronger.
How I studied: I gave myself a period of 21 days to study and prepare for the exam. I would study after office hours for 30-45 daily. I would highly recommend to take notes while studying. Going through the text on Microsoft Learn can be boring. So why I didn't enroll for a Udemy Course instead? Well, Microsoft updates their exams curriculum and not all Udemy courses are not up-to date. My best bet is always to rely on official documentation.
Resources: These are the resources that I referred for studying:
Getting certified shows you are learning and growing. Make sure to at least to the fundamental courses if you are working on Azure. Hope this post helps you. Let me know what you think.